Sick of charities! *

[EVT1]

*Attention grabbing description

I thought about making a thread on this before- but now it is getting ridiculous.

I went to several stores today- needed a few things and ended up pissed off at the whole experience- because I did not use cash.

This has been going on for a while, but it is now spreading.

Now- before you can pay with your credit or debit card, the clerk will ask, and the machine will require, that a donation screen comes up first, asking for a donation of $X. It was Mapco that did it with every purchase a while back- and I quit going to Mapco- now it has moved to other locations. Best I can tell this is probably the card companies behind this- and I wonder how much they are making to do it.  Smart clerks will zip right through it and not piss off the customers- but others have to try to get you to donate.

If anything it will lead back to cash because this is  bullshit- I use my debit or credit card probably 20 times a week or more- I do not need 20 screens begging for charity!

And how much to the processors get out of this I wonder?  50-50 wouldn't shock me.  At least for me I added another store I will never do business with again- might not have the pull of Palm Beach soon to be flooded by non-existent global warming Paul, but that is a deal killer.  I want to pay for what I shopped for- if I want to donate to a charity I will. 

 

[mollyanna58]

Yes, lately Walgreen's has a screen asking if I want to donate today to some charity, along with the clerk asking if I want to buy candy to donate to the troops.

[zibazinski]

DD and I went to the mall the other day. Everywhere we went we were asked to donate. 

[Tennesseer]

I just hit the 'No' button (when asked if I want to donate to ...) on the credit/debit card terminal and move on to the next action.

Verbal requests, I decline with a simple  'No thank you'.  Not something I get upset about.

[EVT1]

I do to- but they are trying to guilt people in to donating. I think we should know where this money is going - regardless if we pay.

Today was March of Dimes- ok good charity- but how much are they getting vs. the credit card processing company? 

Just my opinion I am not giving one cent.  I went 3 places today I used my card and all three machines asked for a charity donation first.  That's 3 places that can kiss my ass from here out. I know damn well the actual charity is getting close to nothing. I guess I have to watch an ad next before I can pay with a card.

[zibazinski]

Well, I can tell you those nice firemen and policemen are not collecting totally for the widows and orphans. Most of it is skimmed off the top for "other things." 

[Deleted]

May 17, 2014 20:45:56 GMT -5 EVT1 said:

MoD is a well known charity, but I am not sure I would call them good. They still have a disproportionately high expense ratio so less of the money you donate actually goes to the cause you are supporting. They have long been targeted for overspending on fundraising.

I make my charity donations annually & not just because someone asks at a register. I don't like that & won't support it. If enough people say no, then that style of fundraising will go away.

[Deleted]

My company does it ... Sorry!

Every time we go to Petsmart they have that screen too, even Dollar General.

I just enter $0.00 or tell the cashier 0 and move on. My wife needs to practice that because she always get guilted into it at Petsmart

[Spellbound454]

I'm never guilted into anything.

If anyone asks, I've already chosen the charities that I support.......and I go out of my way to do just that.

Can't support them all.

[sesfw]

I'm never guilted into anything.

And when someone tries I end up digging my heels in deeper.  DH at times does that but he is getting better.

'No thank you' is a courteous reply.

[Shooby]

Where does it end? It never does.

[Deleted]

Every time I decline one of these requests, it gives me a little pang of guilt, which causes me to slightly not like shopping at that store again. Is this what stores really want?
I don't need anyone making me feel guilty. I can do it myself, all on my own.

[zibazinski]

The clerks hate asking/doing this. If you tell them it makes you feel like not shopping there, maybe they will pass it on but even the managers are forced to comply. 

[truthbound]

I am all for it. People should go back to cash.

[jkapp]

Credit card companies can only get their usual rate on these transactions (usually 2-3%), but if 1 out of 100 customers actually donates out of the thousands of retail transactions that occur daily, then that can add up.

I never give cash to charities because it can be too easily stolen or skimmed from the charity. Plus you never actually know how well the charity uses those funds.  I prefer giving things, such as food or toys to certain charities.

My boss from years back made the mistake of giving money to the Special Olympics one time, and he was soon bombarded on almost a daily basis by emails and letters requesting additional contributions.  It really turned him off from ever contributing to a charity again...

[zibazinski]

That's why I erase my address from my check. Charities also sell their "sucker/donor" list to other charities.

[sesfw]

That's why I erase my address from my check. Charities also sell their "sucker/donor" list to other charities.

When my niece does her cancer run every year I always give cash, no checks.  I know I can't get my charitable deduction but it's only $25 so I don't worry about it.

Every so often I'll get a request in the mail and MAYBE I'll put in $20 anon and send the envelope back.  Usually some animal rescue.

[bean29]

This is also a pet peeve of mine.  I absolutely hate to be asked to donate at the register.  It bogs down the tansaction and it is asking me to donate to the corporate entity's pet charieites.  No thanks.

I hate hate hate being asked to give to some casue at the teller window at the bank.

I always give to the firemen collecting for MD.  Do they really skim off the top?  It never occured to me that they might.  I also always put change in the Salvation Army red kettles especially if they have a bell ringer.  I have heard some negative things about Salvation Army, but they deal with the really down and out populations a lot.

I also give to the old guys selling totsie rolls etc for KC's (My grandpa was a Knight) and the Veterans collecting for VFW.  It's not a lot of $$ and it is respect to their service/time spent.

[zibazinski]

Yes, Bean, they do. They force their firemen to volunteer in their off hours to do this and then the powers that be, use it for their own purposes while giving a token amount to the cause they say they're supporting. People give a lot because they think its going straight to the charity with no overhead. It's another scam. 

[greeniis10]

This isn't exactly about what the OP is referring to, but just a donation gripe in general: I try to donate regularly to the Humane Society of the US, but all the junk they mail me continuously is such a HUGE waste!  No, I don't need anymore gold-trimmed, full-color mailing labels or cloth grocery bags or whatever!  Please stop spending MORE money than I donate annually on junk I don't use.  So wasteful.  I really need to call them and tell them to please stop sending me stuff.

The donation screens on the card machines at the stores don't bother me.  I just skip right over those.

[ՏՇԾԵԵʅՏɧ_LԹՏՏʅҼ]

This is happening a lot more frequently here too (Canada).

Last week alone, I was asked at 3 different places if I wanted to add $1 or other amount to my total for whatever the "Charity Du Jour" was that they were collecting for this time.

And I agree that the majority of the funds collected get dispersed as "operating expenses" or "administrative costs". I think only a small percentage actually gets alloted to the charity or cause of the day.)

[EVT1]

Happening in drive through food too- McDonalds was hitting people up for an extra $1 a while back.

I see the strategy- people paying with a credit card, what's an extra few bucks on a large purchase and they get to feel good for 5 seconds. The same reason snack machines take cards & why fast food embraces it is well- people spend more with a card than they would if it was cash.  Sure- supersize it.  Now you are fat and broke- and pretty soon maybe in need of being helped out by one of those charities.  

[wyouser]

We do the local ones only. Know the groups, know the folks running them, know the people on the receiving end.  One of those small town USA things I guess.

[zibazinski]

The 11k trip after giving 3k to widows and orphans was in Mt. Dora, FL. Small town personified.

[Deleted]

It's not only the store clerks I feel sorry for, in having to do this, but also for all of the kids who belong to organizations that require them to get out there and ask strangers for money. It gives me a real guilt trip to tell a kid "Sorry, no."

[zibazinski]

Doesn't me. I always tell them I have a car they can wash! I work for my money, so should they. If their parents think their darlings are too precious to work for what they need to raise, then they need to pay up themselves.

[Deleted]

May 17, 2014 20:17:49 GMT -5 EVT1 said:

*Attention grabbing description

I thought about making a thread on this before- but now it is getting ridiculous.

I went to several stores today- needed a few things and ended up pissed off at the whole experience- because I did not use cash.

This has been going on for a while, but it is now spreading.

Now- before you can pay with your credit or debit card, the clerk will ask, and the machine will require, that a donation screen comes up first, asking for a donation of $X. It was Mapco that did it with every purchase a while back- and I quit going to Mapco- now it has moved to other locations. Best I can tell this is probably the card companies behind this- and I wonder how much they are making to do it.  Smart clerks will zip right through it and not piss off the customers- but others have to try to get you to donate.

If anything it will lead back to cash because this is  bullshit- I use my debit or credit card probably 20 times a week or more- I do not need 20 screens begging for charity!

And how much to the processors get out of this I wonder?  50-50 wouldn't shock me.  At least for me I added another store I will never do business with again- might not have the pull of Palm Beach soon to be flooded by non-existent global warming Paul, but that is a deal killer.  I want to pay for what I shopped for- if I want to donate to a charity I will. 

 

Never heard about or seen this happen. If it does start here I'm immune to that type of thing and would barely notice and definitely not get upset. Beggars have been around for millennia. If your not used to them by now, you never will be. As a side note to your side note. Any coastal dweller who thinks they're moving to this flyover state when the waters rise, expect to get fleeced beyond compare. Sincerely, The Central U.S. Higher Elevation Landowners Association.

[Deleted]

You obviously don't shop at PetSmart because I have been asked every time I shop there since I got the dog. So....2 1/2 years now. WOW time flies! 

[bean29]

I went to Sam's Club today to get a prescription filled. They couldn't fill my prescription, but they asked me several times to donate to the cause of the day. Don't these retailers realize if we donate more to charity we will need to reduce our spending on retail? GRR

[zibazinski]

Nope, another reason I don't shop at SAMS. They let people beg outside their doors. I worked for my money, you do the same.